Still Waters Run Deep
by Nahji
Summary: My name is Persephone Astraea Jackson, Wielder of Riptide and Bloodletter, Daughter of Poseidon, Basilissa of the Cold North Atlantic Sea, Champion of Olympus, Godslayer. Who are you?
1. Chapter 1

"Talking"

**"Yelling"**

_"Thinking"_

My name is Persephone Astraea Jackson, Wielder of Riptide and Blood-letter, Daughter of Poseidon, Basilissa of the Cold North Atlantic Sea, Champion of Olympus, God Slayer, who are you?

**Chapter 1: Very Bad No Good Days and Unfairly Hot Strangers**

Sally Jackson was very, very unhappy right now. Her day had started out perfectly shitty; first, the washing machines in her apartment building decided to go on strike, and then in her rush to catch her bus some jackass drove through a puddle right next to her, and after that a customer at the diner she worked at decided to be a total ass. In short, her day had Not Gone Well. Which lead to her blowing off all of her responsibilities and going to her favorite beach, Montauk, and walking along the shoreline until she felt ready to deal with other people again.

"She sells seashells down by the sea shore." A smooth male voice interrupted Sally's walk.

"Tell me, where are your wares?" He was handsome, as in not just good looking but handsome with a capital HOT. The man with beautiful sea green eyes smiled. At her!

"U-um, I don't, um I mean uh, sell a-anything, not, not really." She was stuttering like a middle schooler with a crush, how mortifying! The man with his dreamy green eyes, and tacky aloha print shirt, laughed.

"Would you like to take a walk with me?" He held out a large, sun-tanned hand and smiled, even bigger than before. Sally slipped her hand into his.

"Yes."

Sally Jackson was very, very happy right now.

3 months later Sally went back to the beach where she met him for the first time and told him she was pregnant. The look of horror that overtook his face made her stomach plummet in despair.

"Wh-what's wrong? I thought you'd be glad! You always look so happy when you play with the kids on the beach! What's wrong!?" Sally was becoming frantic, how could he look so happy playing with other children but horrified at having his own?

"_But, but what if he's NOT supposed to have children with ME!"_ One look into his sorrow filled face and she knew,

"Is there another woman?" the flinch only made her heart break faster,

"... I'm the other woman...aren't I?" Sally's knees buckled and she would have fallen if he hadn't caught her and gently lowered her to the sand.

"Please Sally don't, don't think like that, I meant it and I'll mean it until the end of creation when I say; I Love You, but please, please ju-just hear me out." He had finally found his voice, looking her in the eyes to emphasize the truth of his words. Taking her continued silence as permission, he started talking.

"First of all, I never meant for this to happen, I never meant to fall in love with you, and I certainly never meant to get you pregnant, but never, NEVER doubt for even a second I'm not happy about this baby. Okay?" He asked. Sally meekly nodded, wiping tears from her eyes.

"I believe you, but if you never meant to meet me or even have a child, why did you stay? And who's the woman you're really supposed to be having this baby with?" He winced again, a grimace twisting his handsome features.

"Well, that's a little harder to explain. You know how I told you that my name wasn't my real name, and that if I told you my real name we'd both get in HUGE trouble?" Sally nodded,

"Well, the thing is I am married, but the marriage is for purely political reasons. She's bossy, and such a _harpy_! I can't stand her constant sour attitude! She's nothing like you Sal, you're wonderful, and sweet, and _so nice._ I'm sure if it was allowed and I took you to meet my family and my brothers, they would all just love you, even my oldest brother! And he's a real dead fish." He rolled his eyes.

"But what in the world could possibly so dangerous about your family that requires you to lie to me?" Sally paused,"... You're not part of the Mafia are you?" She tilted her head, tears forgotten in the face of such a revelation.

He chuckled, "No, angelfish, neither me nor my family are part of the Mafia. It's _much _worse." He mumbled.

"What was that? Did you say something?"

"Nothing my sweet water-lily." He gave a nervous chuckle, hoping that she didn't hear him properly. To distract her, he shifted their position in the sand, settling against a nearby piece of driftwood. Sally narrowed her eyes at him, letting him readjust them as he wished, she was sure he'd said something.

"Now that we're a little more comfortable. Do you have anything else going on today? Cause this explanation is going to take a while."

* * *

New Yorkers everywhere looked on in horrified awe as the worst lighting storm anyone had ever paid witness too raged overhead. The suddenness of the terrible storm baffled experts all over the country, ports were closed and planes grounded. Tonight the sky was, once again, untouchable to mortal beings.

A woman made her way down the street, braving the heavy, cold rain, heading straight towards a taxi stopped on the corner, moving as fast as her pregnant form would allow. Glancing behind her, she accidentally met the eyes of a man clad in a trench coat and full brimmed fedora, standing at the entrance to an alleyway several buildings away. He only had one eye.

Attention drawn to sky by a clamp of thunder that sounded almost offended, "That man better not get himself hurt because of me."

"What was that Ma'am?"

"Nothing! The closest hospital please, I'm due tomorrow"

"Yes Ma'am. Is a Children's alright with you?"

"That's perfect."

Sally looked back as the cabbie left the curb for the trench coated man but there was nothing there. Placing her hands on her swollen belly, she sighed,

"You're gonna be one spectacular little trouble maker aren't you? _Miah_"


	2. Chapter 2

"Talking"

"_Thinking"_

**Chapter 2: The Sword With Identity Issues**

"Now die Honey!" Miss. Dodds shrieked, leathery wings propelling her towards Persephone like a rocket. Suddenly out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mr. Brunner wheel himself into the room.

"What Ho! Percy!" He shouted tossing the pen he always carried at her.

"_Percy? Percy! What the hell gives him the right to call me Percy? We don't fuckin' know each other like that!"_ She thought even as her hand automatically shot out to close around the pen. But the second her hand came into contact with the pen it _changed, _unfolding into a sword. Persephone brought the pen-sword up to block Miss. Dodds's newly revealed claws.

She looked back to the door, but Mr. Brunner was gone.

"You think we wouldn't find you eventually Halfling! Even if you don't stink of your traitorous father, once I got close enough I didn't even have to smell you! I COULD TASTE IT!" The winged woman clawed at her, desperate to have the almost forgotten taste of bastard flesh on her tongue once again. Her sisters would be _so_ envious when she told them of this feast!

Persephone parried each of the Furies strikes, showing an ease with the sword that Ms. Dodds hadn't thought to expect.

"If you think I have _anything_ to do with thunder thighs _temper tantrum_ you're so wrong it's not even _funny_!" Penny swiped at one of the furies wings, managing to score a long cut down the left, sending the woman screaming across the museum to clutch at her injured limb, bearing her fangs at the mortal as gold ichor seeped from her claws.

Penny grinned right back, a feral light in her currently glacier blue eyes, eyes that much like the water they mimicked held no warmth, only the promise of a cold, slow death. The choker around her neck made of three rows of sea glass colored beads melted, flowing down into her hand and freezing into the shape of another sword. She let her lips pull back even more, her smile now less like a smile and more like a hungry showing of teeth.

"I think I like the idea of you dying instead of me," She twirled her new swords and smirked, "Honey."

Furious the Fury tore her hand away from her wing and took to the air again. A whip of fire appearing in hand to tear the demigoddess apart. Penny dodged to the side, metal sword darting out to tangle the whip around it, and then she pulled _hard_. Yanking Miss Dodds down to her level, she raised her ice sword and stabbed it into the right wing then pulled her to side as hard as she could. Penny ripped the wing apart. The Fury dropped to ground and suddenly demigoddess and monster were on even footing.

"Now that you're done fluttering around my head, how's about we really fight? … Alecto." Burning eyes met glacier cool and Miss Dodds, now reveled to be Alecto, could only feel shock and (though she would never admit it) fear.

"You know what you are!" This couldn't be! The little bitch wasn't supposed to be aware of her true parentage. She wasn't supposed to fight back! This was meant to be an easy mission; infiltrate the school, find the stinking bastard child, get her alone long enough to kill her, and be back on Olympus with her sisters by next week!

"_I'm can not be defeated by some skinny bastard child!"_ Alecto thought as she twisted her wrist, producing a second fire-whip, shifting on her feet, she calmed her racing thoughts and focused her hellish eyes on the girl child. Watching as the fury calmed herself, Penny felt the golden blood within her begin to boil; she always liked fighting more than talking it out, it was faster.

"_Looks like it's time to stop playin' with my food."_ Tightening the grip on her swords, Penny flexed her knees, _"Track is about to pay off." _She eyed the other woman's feet and hands.

They burst into motion at the same time, colliding in the middle with a meaty _thud! _Penny shoved her shoulder into Alecto's chest, metal sword primed to stab her in the stomach. Alecto circled her arm down between them and then _pushed_, trying to get the distance to use her whips properly, but Penny stayed close. She swung her ice-sword down from her left shoulder to right hip hard, nearly catching Alecto in the neck; following through with her metal sword, scored her a small but deep cut to ribs of her opponent. Knowing the only way beat someone as experienced as Alecto was at beating demigods; Penny pressed her advantage. She brought her arm back down on Alecto's neck, forcing her to bend backwards leaving her stomach unprotected, Penny thrust her ice-sword forward and _up!_

"H-How did y-ou kn-ow?" Gasping around the sword thrust into her chest flooding her body with ice, Alecto _had_ to know _how_ this demi-shrimp bested her, one of the Goddess of Vengeance!

"You want to know how I bested you, is that it?" The Goddess's wide eyes told Penny all she needed to know. Ignoring the gold liquid pouring down her arm, she noticed Alecto's feet were already turning to dust.

"I've done my research pretty bird." The last thing Alecto saw before crumpling to dust to await reanimation in The Pit was Persephone Jackson's terrifying, blood stained grin.

Penny took a second to look around her. The ichor on her cloths and the ground was already disappearing, and their fight had done little damage to the Greek exhibit. She studied the pen-sword, _'Nicely made and sturdy, function over form is always something I can get behind."_ Writing on the blade near the pommel caught her attention. _'Riptide, huh? You must be a remnant of one of my half cousins'_

"Well Riptide, I do believe you've fought well here today. I hope to work with you in the future." In response the pen-sword warmed in her small hand, and shrunk back into a pen with a _click._

She turned towards the entrance the Greek Exhibit, stuffing the pen-sword in her jean's pocket.

"That was fun while it lasted."


	3. Chapter 3

I am the sorriest anyone could be over how long this took! School decide to do what it does beat and drown me in work, I hope this appease you guys and I hope you have great day/nights/weeks! Bye, bye.

* * *

Brushing golden dust off her shoulders, Penny exited the Greek exhibit and headed towards the gift shop, it was time to do damage control. Stepping into the small shop, Penny noticed the themed knick-knacks and other touristy things. Spotting the shirts she picked one out in Nancy Bobofit's size with the ugliest print she could find and quickly bought it. As she was making her way out of the museum and over to where her class was waiting to go back to the school she was stopped by Mr. Brunner.

"Ah, Ms. Jackson, I see you have made it out of your punishment with limbs intact, though next time I must ask you to bring your own writing utensil." His wise brown eyes stared into her own shifting sea colored orbs. Penny gave him a nervous smile, more than ready to pretend as long as necessary.

"Yea-yeah Mr. Brunner I'll remember that next time." As she walked away he called out to her again.

"Ms. Jackson, my pen?" The wheelchair-bound man held out his hand for the shape-shifting pen. Mentally Penny sighed, she'd been hoping he'd keep up the charade and not even mention the pen to keep her from questioning whatever lie they'd come up with. Too bad, the pen-sword was nice, but not as nice as her ice. Digging the pen out her pocket, she tossed it to the man.

"Sorry Mr. Brunner, I forgot about it up until just now. If you hadn't reminded me I would have walked right off with it. There you go Mr. B" Keeping the disappointment from her eyes Penny turned back toward the fountain, she'd really wanted that pen. Coming upon Grover, who looked even more nervous than usual, and a soaking wet Nancy, she glared at the both of them.

"Grover the next time you try to sit next to me, ever, I'll be the one to dump your ass in the fountain. We clear?" Her ice colored glare and threatening smile made the twitchy boy shudder with fear. The look alone told Grover she would do it in a heartbeat, never mind his crutches, he sighed out loud when Penny turned all of her formidable attention to Nancy next.

"And you! Bobo_shit_! What the hell do you think you're doing acting like the jackass you are in a _public place_? Last I checked one of my Ground Rules was to 'Keep all bullying to school grounds and out of sight of teachers' wasn't it?" Getting a meek nod out of the redhead Penny continued chewing the uppity bitch out, "The next time I catch you doin' that shit I'll hold you under!" Shoving the gift shop bag into Nancy's chest she turned to get on the bus, "And change your clothes bitch, you're a mess."

Taking a seat on the bus, she realized _They_ had already pulled the switch and Mrs. Dodds was now Mrs. Kerr and every kid on the trip excluding Grover believed the lie. The boy was a terrible liar, but that just made the game more fun for her; watching him slip up and then reaching in to keep him from drowning was something entertaining to do when she wasn't selling contraband or collecting protection money from weaklings.

* * *

School continued even as the weather of New York got worse and worse as the months went on, or rather as she continued to live. Tornados, lightning storms, wildfires, and hurricanes all threatened to wipe New York off the face of the planet, and end of the year exams loomed even closer. But Penny wasn't bothered, she continued with her usual illegal activities' regardless of the crap weather, after all, a smart business woman wouldn't let a little rain get her down. She controlled the Yancy Academy underground. Candy, test answers, doctors notes, cigarettes, and pills, even alcohol, you name it, she could get it. For a price of course. Anyone who tried to cut in on her profit was quickly and ruthlessly crushed under her heel until they agreed to either work for her or never sell again or were expelled because a teacher got an 'anonymous' tip.

In class Penny kept her grades in the high B low A range, perfect to please her mother and go unnoticed for being 'too smart', having too much attention focused on her would lead to people finding out about her less than legal activities. Despite having problems with ADHD when she was younger, and thusly transferred to Yancy for their learning program geared toward ADHD, taking pills during the day made other kids way too curious in her opinion and plus they made Penny feel slow, like her mind was swimming through syrup. Penny worked with her mom to find an exercise slash meditation regimen that allowed her to go without Adderall, meaning she could leave Yancy if she wanted to, but she didn't, she'd put too much work into her network at the school and besides, Yancy was better off with Penny in charge. Everyone had to score above a certain grade average if they wanted to buy from her, and bullying wasn't allowed unless she approved of it (she only gave approval if it was someone who needed a major attitude transplant or Grover), the upperclassmen were to help all the freshman with classes and things, and anyone who needed help with tutoring could get it whenever they needed it (anyone who bought test answers was teased).

Penny was hard at work, studying for Mr. Brunner's Greek final when she felt the need to take a walk. Penny sometimes got 'feelings' that would lead either to trouble that turned good in the end or something good that lead to trouble that turned good. No matter what happened she always listened to her feelings, her gut never lead her wrong. She got up and wandered the halls following where her tummy lead until she came to Mr. Brunner's office, the light was on and two voices came through the cracked door, both were familiar.

"…worried …. Penny doesn't believe…. might find out before she's ready"

"Don't worry Grover, Ms. Jackson believes the Mist, and even if she doesn't, her peers will quickly convince her it was all imagination."

So Brenner and Grover were in on whatever was up with that feathered freak! Penny remembered the bird brain squawking at her about 'paying for her crimes' and 'not being able to run any longer' if the higher-ups were worried about her getting to big for her britches they would've just zapped her a long time ago so it couldn't be about her living long enough to reach 14. Why was Thunder-thighs so rattled?

"But! The Solstice is coming up fast and no one can find _his_ token! What if they blame Percy? She hasn't done anything wrong! … this week." Grover's' eternally nervous voice trembled oddly around his words, like he was holding back a cough or something.

"Calm yourself Mr. Underwood, Ms. Jackson will come to no harm, her Father will not allow it, and the morals by which _They_ are governed will not let her be prosecuted unjustly." Mr. Brenner's voice, as steady as ever, seemed to be coming for an unusually high place to Penny's ears, like he was tall instead of wheel-chair bound. Shifting her feet under her in a crouch, Penny tried to scoot closer to the door to listen better when her sneaker caught on the tile beneath her and gave off a small _squeak_. In the room all activity stopped and there was only the sound of the harsh wind outside the school. Then there was suddenly movement. Penny moved at the same time, quickly darting into an adjacent classroom, slipping passed the thankfully open door, Penny spun around the corner and into the shadows at the same time as an odd sounding walk reached the door the Mr. Brenner's office.

Light spilled into the hallway, giving definition to a strange shadow. The figure at the door was oddly tall for a man, Penny was sure only a basketball player could ever be _that_ tall, and as the figure moved further into the hallway, the oddly paced walk reached her ears again; it was almost like, horse hoofs against concrete. Penny held her breath waiting to be discovered or ignored. Grover's voice broke the tension.

"What is it? A-a.. creature?" The quite, yet terrified whisper was accompanied by a cutoff warble.

The figure scanned the hallway once more with well-measured sweeps of the head before speaking in Mr. Brenner's voice, "No Grover it was nothing, we need to cut this meeting short, speaking about this like this in such a place is simply asking for trouble."

Soon the sounds of Mr. Brenner's chair and Grover's uneven walk told Penny she was in the clear, but she waited until she had counted to 100 twice in her head before she dared do more then breathe through her nose. Once she was sure the coast was clear Penny straightened out of her crouch and took a steadying breath, _"So this Solstice thing is the up-and-coming event to the higher-ups and something mucho importunate is missing? Well, that makes things very interesting"_ With a smirk firmly in place, Penny headed back to her dorm room.


End file.
